Malapascua & Fun Under the Sea

Leaving Santo Domingo Orchards was both a sad and happy affair. We were starting another leg of our journey. The night before we left was spent in town with Mr. P, along with an awesome dinner. At dinner there was his family. The next morning we had some breakfast and were helped to the bus terminal. He is a very amazing guy and I'd like to thank him once more.

We took a bus for an hour or so to catch a ferry to an island, and then we caught another ferry to the main island of Cebu. From the last ferry we needed to go another 20 or so kilometers. We arrived a little later in the evening, a lot of the transportation options were very expensive. We did find, after talking them down, a motorcycle for 500 P. We all packed on and set off. The driver wore Meg's bag in front of him, Meg was in the middle, and I was holding on for dear life mostly the back seat. I had the metal rack behind me so I wasn't going to slip off but it was very uncomfortable. The whole ride was about an hour long. I was so thankful to get off of the motorcycle and let my legs feel solid land. Arriving late at night we still needed one more ferry or water taxi to get to Malapascua. It was late at night and everyone wanted an arm and a leg for the ride to the Malapascua. We looked around and debated prices of getting a room and waiting for the normal ferry, which was only 80 P per person. We struck gold and found someone that had to return that night and found our way across for 500 P for the both of us. The boat ride at night, no massive city near by, and combined with a full moon was magical. I had an amazing 30 minutes ride. One of the guys on the boat was nice enough to offer help in find a place to stay. We settled in after looking into a few places and found one that met our price needs.

Photos from along the way to Malapascua:

The next day we staked out all of the hotels and found one that had backpacker rooms for only 500 P a night. Getting around on the island wasn't a problem but there are only a few places that we had found to be reasonably priced for the Philippines. We ended up staying extra days because we were loving it there so much. The summary of the days events were laying by the beach, laying by the pool, playing ping-pong, eating, walking around the island (only 3 Km around), and scuba diving.

One of the days while walking around we were invited to a hotel's new wing opening. At the opening we were given a full dinner and lots of treats. I've been told it is very common in the Philippines for any new business venture to include a feast for good luck and they will often invite just about anyone.

I had never been scuba diving but I found it claustrophobic the first time when I was out of the pool and deeper in the ocean. Once I got over my small panic attack, it was an amazing time. I found it much more enjoyable than skydiving. I don't have any photos from that experience, sadly. On one of the last days we also went snorkeling, because the diving trip was already fully booked.

Photos from around and on Malapascua:

We took a boat back to the main island, which was the boats maiden voyage, so it came with some food and soda. The boat almost capsized when coming into port, so yeah, that was fun. We made it back to Cebu island a little more tan and with a lot of smiles. Now we were on our way to Bohol for some more Philippine magic.

Tip Of The Day: Take a ride on a boat at night...especially if it is both a warm night and a full moon...you'll probably not regret it. You're welcome.